Does Kotlin really have a chance to replace Java, or is it just wishful thinking by Google/JetBrains...
Yes, it's already doing it!
Zhenxu Ke, Full Stack Engineer (2016-present)
Answered Sep 8
Kotlin have a chance to replace Java but it largely depends on Java (technically on its owner, Oracle).
Firstly, from the point of language syntax and grammar, Kotlin appears to enhance Java and expose some shortages of the latter. Java programmers tasted the sweetness of Kotlin are difficult to get back to Java.
Secondly, Kotlin was first introduced as Android official language but that doesn't mean it's only applicable to Android development. I had tried it in some small JavaWeb projects and Kotlin behaved perfectly.
So why do I say “it depends”? If Java realize its shortages and make remarkable progress to keep it competitive, it would be difficult for Kotlin to replace Java, but if Java is continuously a mediocre, no one is on duty to protect it being replaced.
Michael Fordham, Written two books on Amazon about Kotlin
Answered Sep 8
I don't think anyone is looking at Kotlin to replace Java in the near future. Kotlin is a nice new-ish langauge which is fairly complementary to Java (as they are 100% interoperable) and allows Android development to be a bit faster and less annoying, as you don't have as much boiler-plate code (it has many other uses besides Android development too).
However, Java is largely an industry standard, and hundreds of thousands of pieces of software are already developed in Java, so will always require some upkeep, understanding and updates. Of course, Kotlin may change things and who knows, maybe everyone will fall for Kotlin, but right now it is nowhere near as popular. It has received a good reaction from the industry though, which is promising for it.
Adeeb Rahman, ReactDOM.com, The ReactJS, React Native & GraphQL Newsletter
Answered 16h ago
I wouldn't say it will replace it. What will happen is that it will be a minority language that is supported by Google. Java is simply to big, having existed for multiple decades and being taught everywhere from boot camps to university. Kotlin however, will be faster updated and is made with Android in mind. So it will be very efficient for that.
Jack Clark, Writer of Code
Answered Sep 7
I don’t think Google’s motive is to replace Java.
My guess is that Google wants Kotlin to be the new primary language for Android. Because that’s where they went first with it.
I personally think that Kotlin could get huge, because it can interface with Java, can run on the JVM, and can even be compiled into JavaScript.
This means that you don’t have to rewrite existing code, you can just start using a new language, which is huge.
Kotlin probably won’t replace Java, there’s too much code in Java, and a lot of people don’t want to spend a lot of time and such learning a new language. But it will become a force to be reckoned with.
Ed Guenther
Answered Sep 8
It has a lot of potential. And keep in mind: there isn’t just “one” single compact Java ecosystem … there many millions or billions of lines of Java code - used for all kinds of things.
Many organisations will probably wait a long time before introducing Kotlin (think big enterprise - banking - insurances …) - but others have less of a investment they need to somehow protect.
In other words: there is a good chance that Kotlin will be the main language for the Android platform in a few years. Does that mean that Kotlin will also be the lingua franca in the banking sector? Maybe, more likely: maybe not.
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